TIPS TO PREVENT DROWNINGS IN OPEN WATER SUCH AS LAKES, PONDS, RIVERS, AND CREEKS

Follow these tips around Open Water

*Children should always wear life jackets when they are in or even near the water. Even if the child knows how to swim, anything can happen to create an emergency. If the child is wearing a life jacket when the emergency occurs, they will have a better chance of surviving.

*Actively supervise children in and around open bodies of water, giving them your undivided attention. Appoint a designated "Water Watcher", taking turns with other adults.

*Enroll your child in swimming lessons after age four, the earliest age when they are likely to practice and retain information. Teach children how to tread water, float, and stay by the shore.

*Make sure kids swim only in areas designated for swimming.

*Teach children that swimming in open water is not the same as swimming in a pool. They need to be aware of uneven surfaces, river currents, ocean undertows, and changing weather.

*Teach children not to dive into oceans, lakes, ponds, or rivers because they may not know how deep the water is or what might be hidden under the surface of the water.

*Learn infant and child CPR and keep a phone and emergency numbers for the area just in case.

*Refrain from drinking alcohol if you are responsible for children in or near the water.

Protect children while boating, by following these steps.

*Children should always wear a life jacket approved by the U.S. Coast Guard while on boats or around open bodies of water or when participating in water sports.

*The life jacket should fit snuggly and not allow the child's chin or ears to slip through the neck opening.